IY Drabbles
by J. Merritt
Summary: A collection of various drabbles I've written for iyficchallenge, iyficcontest, Isswkiwa, and my own amusement. Stories range from rated K to M. Enjoy!
1. This Sesshomaru

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Character: Sesshomaru_

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_**This Sesshomaru...**

This Sesshomaru is a great demon, son of a great demon from a long line of great demons. This Sesshomaru is a Lord, a powerful Lord – one to be feared. This Sesshomaru does not need the Shikon no Tama to increase his powers; this Sesshomaru is already strong – great. This Sesshomaru is not afraid of anyone or anything.

However…

This Sesshomaru fears…for my daughter, my Rin.

She's sleeping now, curled beside Ah-un, her breath coming in long sighs and incoherent mummers as she sleeps; and I wonder what she dreams of. This girl, this child, who has decided to stay with me – a demon.

She does not fear – not my claws nor my fangs – no, she fears only that I will leave her. This child, my Rin.

For her...I fear.

For her...I love.


	2. Heartbeat

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: Naraku/Onigumo/Kikyou__

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**Heartbeat**

He hated it - the steady beat beat of his human heart. It with its human desires that kept him awake at night - thinking of her, longing for her. It was not the strong beat beat coldness of the youki he pretended to be.

So he carved it out. Wrapped it in flesh. Separated himself from its human desires - human weakness.

Inside his chest there was no steady beat beat of love and longing - there was nothing.

Even her screams couldn't reach him now.

Satisfied he watched her blood run through his hands, staining the pure ground with his evil desires, as he listened to the slowing beat beat of her dead heart. Her dead human eyes stared into his, her hand leaving a bloody trail across his cheek.

"Onigumo."

But his heart was not his own, and it did not skip in a flurry beat beat at her voice - or her death.

Numbly the demon Naraku held the dead miko - killed twice by his hand - and relished in his coldness. He was a youki, freed of human wants. His heart would never again go beat beat for anyone. He was cold - heartless.

A single tear escaped from his lashes, rolled slowly down his cheek, splashing onto the face of the dead miko.

How he would miss the beat beat of her heart.


	3. Secrets

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: Miroku/Sango_

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**Secrets**

She'd forgotten how many he'd asked. At first it'd shocked her. The shock was replaced by irritation which faded to pain. The pain was soon accompanied by hopelessness. That was when she realized she loved him. If he noticed he never said anything. He didn't ask and she didn't tell. It was their most precious secret.

Later, when he'd touched her hand and asked her to share his house, hope had returned, blossomed, only to be crushed at his refused fidelity. Still she loved him and convinced herself it'd be enough. His touch, his kisses, his warm embrace, although never solely hers, was enough - for a while. But the knowledge that she wasn't his only one shadowed her world, adding to the heavy burden she already carried. Darkness consumed her. As she stood there on the edge of her world, ready to plunge forever into the black sea below, it was his arms that pulled her back – back into the warm light. She'd cried. He'd held her. No words were needed. It was their most precious secret.

Tremors shook his body, Naraku's poison taking effect. He didn't have much longer. Silently he'd pressed the rosary into her hands, smiling that special smile he reserved only for her and dove headfirst into the reaper's awaiting arms. He'd saved them all. Numb she'd pressed the rosary to her heart remembering their last night together. It was their most precious secret.

Silent tears rolled down her cheeks as she fell to her knees. Her fingers grasped the grass, wet with the morning dew, her shoulders shaking slightly. Wordlessly she dropped the gifts into the crater before her, their colorful petals decorating the scarred earth. Her houshi's last mark on the world – well almost. Tenderly her hand moved to her slightly swollen belly, the rosary clacking nosily on her wrist.

It was her most precious secret.


	4. Shooting Star

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: InuYasha/Kagome FLUFF!  
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_**Shooting Star**

"I'll never stop trying. No matter how hard, I'll never give up."

"Why is it so important to you?"

"Because, I made a promise – to my father."

"Your father?"

"Hai."

He watched her, stunned. "So, what was this promise?"

She laughed a light, girlish laugh. "I wanted to touch the stars!"

"The stars?"

"Hai. Silly, isn't it?" She laughed again. "When I was young, Father and I used to sit beneath Goshinboku, stargazing. I told him one day I'd fly there and touch the stars." She dropped her head, her voice softening. "He'd smiled at me and told me if that's what I wanted, it'd be difficult. But it'd be enough as long as I kept trying."

He was silent for a long time, standing beside her, staring at the stars.

"Don't peek Kagome!"

"I won't, I promise," she assured him, hugging his back, allowing herself this one moment of serenity. She sighed inwardly as she felt him stop, slowly sliding from his warm body.  
She didn't expect the cold water.

"InuYasha!..." Her angry rebuke died on her tongue as she gazed at the beauty that lay out before her. Thousands of stars reflected back to her, around her. She fixed questioning eyes upon him, noting his slight blush as he took her hands in his, scooping them through the water.

"I can't give you the stars Kagome, but I hope this will be enough."

She gazed at their hands, the water reflecting the stars and their faces – together. Tears stung her eyes. Smiling she leaned up, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. "Arigato InuYasha."


	5. Reflections

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Character: __Kikyou_

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_**Reflections**

They called her lucky. She who would never be forced to marry against her will. She who would never be expected to do domestic chores or care for infant children. She who only had to worry of demons, the villagers and the Shikon no Tama..

Oh yes, she was indeed lucky.

How easily they forgot the burdens she faced; the sacrifices she made. While they flirted with young village boys, she sat alone meditating. While they experimented with love, she faced death. While they married and started their own families, she was left alone with nothing but a tainted jewel for companionship.

Was it a wonder then, that one night in a desperate plea of loneliness, she'd clutched the Shikon no Tama to her heart and feverishly wished that she too could know love? Was it so evil of her to want to love and be loved in return - to marry and start a family of her own?

The Shikon no Tama thought so.

It embraced her wish, calling to her one that she'd never be able to truly love, knowing her loneliness wouldn't allow her to send him away. And so it began the dangerous love affair of a hanyou and miko; each striving for power over the other, each desperately needing the other, though neither would admit it. Until the day they turned on one another, their instinctive distrust shattering the fragile love that had bloomed between them.

Dying before the Goshinboku, her sacred arrow imbedded in the heart of her beloved, she remembered the words of the young village girls. They'd called her lucky.

Oh yes, she was lucky indeed.


	6. A Mother's Duty

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Character: Mama Higurashi

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**A Mother's Duty**

She considered herself a reasonable woman. How many mothers could watch their daughters jump into a seemingly empty well only to vanish before their eyes and return weeks later with a red-clad boy with fuzzy dog ears? Not many, she was sure – she'd asked. After many strange glances and whispered "poor dear", she'd returned home and sat beneath Goshinboku sipping her tea and thinking.

As a mother she had responsibilities, priorities, decisions. No one had ever said parenting was easy. She smiled, waving to her daughter and said boy as they returned from their feudal travels, informing them dinner would be ready soon. Then she stood, ready to take action. After all, a mother does have responsibilities, and she knew in time they'd understand.

As she stood face to face with her enemy she showed no fear – no hesitation. It had to be done. Turning the ignition, she began to back the cement truck towards the well-house. Missions and jewel shards be damned – no one was going to come between her and her furry-eared grandchildren.


	7. Sweet Girl

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Characters__: Kikyou/Kagome_

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_**Sweet Girl****  
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You don't understand – how could you? You are so very young. Oh, it's not our age that separates us; I wasn't much older than you are now, when I was called away. It's your innocence, your naivety that separates us. You who have never known hunger or war. You who have never known the ache of loneliness or despair. You who have never had to face the dark alone. You who have always been surrounded by friends and family.

Sweet naïve girl.

I hate you.

But there is more to you than meets the eye. You have shown me that. You who abandoned your friends to help me, pulled me once more from the eternal clutches of the dark. You who stood alone faced with the decision to save your lover's bride. You who embraced the chilly waters of time, swimming through its memories to save a dead woman. You who surrendered a part of herself to give life to clay and bones. You who sacrificed yourself to save me, healing old wounds with your gentle touch – your kindness. You who have never denied me the only thing you ever desired, even though the pain of our joining drove you to despair. For the first time blackness seeped into your innocent heart.

Sweet naïve girl.

I've broken you.

You are older now. The years have not been gentle – seeing you through the loss of family and friends. One by one they were taken away, leaving you alone in a cold, dark world. In the end, even he left – unable even in death to say those simple words you longed to hear. You wanted to follow him, but couldn't. With my sister dead the villagers looked to you for guidance. You stayed – trapped in a world that was not your own. Trapped in a life that was not your own. You stand before the river now, gazing at a reflection you've grown accustomed to, cold gray eyes glaring back at you.

Sweet naïve girl.

You've **become** me.


	8. Wet Dreams

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: Kouga/Kagome  
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_**Wet Dreams**

He'd mated her, bedded her, loved her; grasped her hands while she howled at the moon, releasing the she-wolf he'd sensed so long ago when she'd challenged him – demanding the kit's life. Exhausted from their coupling he collapsed onto her chest, his lips pressed against her sweat-slicked skin as the floated lazily down to earth. Her heart beat loudly against his ear, each beat a declaration of her love, her devotion. She was his; his property – his mate. From the fist time she'd spread her milky thighs allowing him to penetrate her warmest secrets, she'd become his. Even now his seed lay within her – proof of his domain, his conquest. Their coupling had been short but fierce. It always was. He couldn't be gentle to her. Not when she was covered in the mutt's scent. He punished her with every angry thrust of his hips. She always screamed her ecstasy. Staring into her fathomless eyes he fell, drowning in his desire of her.

"Kagome…"

"We'll always be friends Kouga."

She smiled at him as the world burned. Never had such vile words been uttered from such a sweet mouth. A mouth his wanted to claim for his own. He watched them leave, the mutt dangerously close to HIS Kagome, vowing tonight she'd pay most dearly.

Some part of him knew she'd never love him, never gaze upon him with eyes of anything but friendship; but that didn't matter. He'd chosen her for his mate – and wolves mated for life. He'd never forget his mate even if the only time he ever held her was in his darkest dreams.


	9. Easy as a Lie

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me._  
_ Pairing: Miroku/Sango_

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**Easy as a Lie  
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It's easy to forget her.

Easy to forget her long brown hair swishing temptingly over her rear, the rich brown of her eyes gazing into mine, the soft pink of her pouting lips or the delicious curve of her hips swaying as she storms away from me.

It's easy to forget how badly I want to pull her close, to feel her soft curves mesh with my body, to attack her lips in a relentless passion. Easy to forget how badly I want to feel her arms encircle me, to hear her moaning beneath me as I slide into her warmth, her body arching against mine.

It's easy to lose myself in a future with her by my side, our children's laugher ringing through our home. Easy to see myself old and gray looking at her with the same passion I do now, knowing that in her I have found my home.

It's easy to forget how much I love her, at least, until I wake up.


	10. Truths

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Character: Miroku_

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**Truths****  
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My eyes land on my left hand, as they always do whenever I'm left with too much time to myself. The cloth and rosary seals, mocking me with their presence; a cruel reminder of what I'll never have – what I'll never be able to give - my own hand in wedded bliss. Always I must keep it hidden – as I must hide my turmoil everyday.

They don't understand. How could they? Their lives aren't measured in the void – an invisible force consuming them from the inside out. They don't live with the knowledge that each heartbeat could be their last, the weight of knowing that death is certain in the form of nothingness – not even a grave; nothing to remember me by but a crater to mark my untimely end.

And yet it's not my passing that worries me. I accepted my fate long ago when I watched my father consumed. No, my thoughts today are for someone far more important; my dear Sango. What will she do when I am gone? Who will be there to hold and comfort her, to chase away her demons in the cold, lonely nights; to make her smile with all the sunshine in her heart?

Stunned I stare at my cursed hand. When did my heart betray me? When did she become more than another woman to me; more than a comrade? When did her happiness, her smile, become vital to my own? When did I fall in love with her?

Selfishly I want to share this, to tell her how I feel, knowing she'd throw herself into my arms never thinking twice about the consequences. But I cannot allow it. My death would destroy her. I may never tell her out loud but I know; I'll love her until my dying day.


	11. Grief

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing: InuYasha/Kikyou/Kagome

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**Grief**

It was ironic. All the hours spent dreading this moment, this harsh reality; dreading the damning decision that would have to be made. Irony was that it wasn't my enemy that forced it. It would've been easier then, acceptable, another kink in my already twisted existence. No – it was you who forced me.

"Decide InuYasha," you whispered death pale lips pulled tight, your bow drawn taunt aimed not for me – no, then it would've been easy to die for you, for us – but for you/her.

You pointed your deadly arrow at you/her.

"Choose InuYasha."

Unforgivable, hate me – destroy me – but leave you/her alone! She's done nothing to you; nothing to deserve this fate! If only you'd kept hating me, never turned your arrow. I swore I'd protect her - even from you.

_From myself…_

I never really had to choose. Instinct took over long before my mind rationalized the situation. She was in danger, it mattered not that it was you on the other end of the bow. I knew only one desperate fear driven desire – to protect you/her as I had failed you.

And what could I do but laugh? In the face of such tragedy, with my white-hot tears scaring my face with their innocence, burning away what goodness was left in me, I threw back my head and guffawed like a madman howling at the moon until everything was gone inside and I became as empty as the clay pot of a woman I'd destroyed.

And somewhere between the mess of insanity and grief, the laughter became empty and hollow; hiccupping into stifled sobs that burned in my chest and ripped through my sides even as new tears – no longer innocent – spilled down my reddened cheeks while everything inside shreded into a thousand pieces sending me to my knees, desperately holding onto any semblance of the reality I once knew, holding the broken pieces to my heart like a shattered doll, whimpering like the dog beast I am.

What else could I do?


	12. Death's Kiss

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Character: Kikyou/Kagome _

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**Death's Kiss**

"A gift," she whispers lying beside me, dead arms reaching for me, ensnaring me with promises of cold passion; pressing lips of ice to my feverish skin. Frigid hands roam over my body caressing the hills and valleys with experience I can't help but to wonder how she gained; slipping beneath soaked clothing to run through the fluids coating my skin.

Her assault continues as she lowers her lips with promise of a little death, their un-dead chill wrapping around my throbbing warmth. I cry out as she begins to suckle, withering beneath her administrations. Her iron grasp keeps me firmly in place as she brings me to the edge, her tongue darting expertly within me. My vision blurs, unable to withstand it a moment longer, I scream my release falling quickly into black oblivion.

Panting, barely conscious, I watch as she presses a green salve to the wound, bandaging it with the tenderness of a lover. Cold gray eyes look on mine, a trickle of my blood at her lips.

"I've removed the poison. He will be here soon."

"Why?" The weak whisper barely leaves my lips.

She watches me for long moments before standing. Looking over her shoulder she meets my eyes.

"Without the light, there is no shadow."

I watch her vanish into the night, listening as InuYasha's voice becomes clearer. A gift she'd said. I smile as I wonder if he's ever felt her lips like that.


	13. It

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: Kouga/Kagome_

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_**It**

It was always there, a persistent itch beneath my skin. At first I ignored it, drowning myself in your blue-gray eyes; burying it in your smile and gentle touch, smothering it with flowers and promises.

I thought I understood.

Love.

_Lust._

It grew. Consumed by your ghost scent, your imaginary touch caressing my skin as you surrendered to me – destroyed. Knowing he was there beside you, holding you, feeling your skin, hearing your voice, gifted with your smiles. Knowing you loved him.

I thought I understood.

Jealousy.

_Hate._

Bathed in your blood, it's rich scent clinging to me like a blanket, its warmth cooling on my tongue I finally understand. What a fool I'd been to confuse love-lust with blood-lust. The itch is finally gone, my dear Kagome.

_Release._


	14. Tainted Love

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: Naraku/Onigumo/Kikyou/Kagome  
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_**Tainted Love**

I hate her. Of this I'm certain.

That smug miko of ebony and ice - with eyes as sharp as glass and ivory skin as cold as the grave.

_I love her. Of this I'm certain._

_That gentle woman, as pure and perfect as a porcelain doll. _

She raises her arms to me; the silver arrow flooded with her physic power - arrows that burn into my lovely flesh.  
"What have you done!" She demands, the arrow a taunt line between us, a clear boundary – stay away.

I smirk. She's frightened. I smell it and my demon blood quickens.

_You fear me? Do you still not understand how much I love you? I sacrificed my body – my life – for you! _

Her face is frozen in perfect horror as my new body reveals its secrets, the sharp blade cutting deep into her flesh. Understanding flashes into her pained eyes even as I dimly acknowledge that fact she does not bleed.

_It wasn't supposed to be like this! It's not too late! _

Clay does not bleed. Dead do not bleed. The souls are fleeing her clay body. Even if I do not kill her now, she will not live. She is broken now – unable to sustain her own un-life.

"You underestimated me Kikyou. As long as I carried that worthless human heart within my breast I could not hurt you. But even now, as I crush you, I do not feel a thing."

_But I do!_

Paralyzed I watch her fall. My own shock reflected in her eyes. I've killed her; the cold miko with eyes of ice and hands as gentle as a summer breeze. My Kikyou. The demons surge, delighted in the death of a hated enemy even as my human self crumbles, destroyed by the knowledge of killing her once again; his anguish becoming so great that my strong demon self falters. For a moment I stand there stunned by the strange emotion sweeping through me. An emotion I'd tasted but once before – long ago when I was still the weak human, Onigumo.

Love.

A weak human emotion, the demons assure me, aiding me in locking my human self away.

For the first time in decades I watch the sun set. Its brilliant colors reaching towards me – as her hands did. The pain is still there, even though my human self is once more chained away. I cannot erase from my memory the piercing gray of her eyes, the sweep of her ebony hair, the sharp gasp of air that was her last, or the look of betrayal as she fell to her death - a death once again at my hands. There is no blood but I'll never be able to wash away its stains. Though I separated myself from my human heart, the feelings are still there. I was wrong. It was not just Onigumo that loved her.

I love her. Of this I'm certain.

_I love her. Of this I'm certain._

The girl who is the mirror of the woman - a child of ebony and sunshine. She trembles as I gently caress her cheek, my talons smearing the blood that covers her face. Whispering gentle words of devotion I hold her close, delighting in the shivers that run through her body.

_Do you see it yet? How much I love you? _

Gently I press my lips to her forehead savoring the sweet taste of her blood and sweat. She opens her mouth to protest, choking on her own blood. I quickly hush her.

Haunted eyes watch me. The same eyes I remember from decades before, glaring back at me as I sunk my talons deep into her soft flesh.

_Kikyou…now do you understand? You are mine! _

"You are mine," I whisper repeating the need of my human/demon self. Understanding flashes into her fading eyes.

_You will love me! You MUST love me!_

Silently I hold the shard before her, an unspoken question – the boy or me? Death or life?

_See how much I love you! Enough to free you from the confines of human flesh! Enough to share my power with you!_

She looks past me, to the crumpled form of the boy.

"InuYasha…" Her dying words drip from her lips.

Stunned I stare at the corpse in my arms.

It's wrong – all wrong.

_She should've loved me…_

…but something went wrong. She doesn't. Thrice her lover had failed to save her. Thrice she called his name, not mine. She never calls my name.

I sit back and wait. Time is of no importance anymore. Nothing matters, but the sound of my name on her lips. Years fade into decades fade into centuries. Five centuries. I see her now, walking towards me. She smiles.

"Good morning Hojo-kun."

Her smile widens as she looks past me, seeing him - the boy from her past, the man of her future. She runs to him leaving me with nothing but the memory of my name on her sweet lips.

I love her. Of this I'm certain.

_I hate her. Of this I'm certain._


	15. The Secret of Strength

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Character: Shippou_

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_**The Secret of Strength**

He dropped the rock with grim dissatisfaction. It hadn't been there. Nor had it produced itself in the tree-tops or riverbeds or even in the field of flowers that had distracted him with their colorful scents.

Frustrated he sat down, crossing his arms as InuYasha sometimes did and thought. InuYasha spoke of it often, always convinced he needed more. Kagome whispered prayers for it at night when she thought everyone was asleep. Miroku and Sango breathed for it, especially when he strayed to another woman. But where did one find it? Perhaps it would come find him; InuYasha said trouble always did. So he waited, but his tummy grumbled and he decided to continue his hunt later.

He recognized InuYasha's sour expression at once, knowing his adopted mother would have punished him for his morning antics.

"Where have you been runt?"

He just smiled a secret kitsune smile, plopping beside Kagome. Kirara meowed at his feet catching his attention, as he was struck with an incredible idea. He hadn't searched the clouds.

_InuYasha always flies through them, so that's where strength must be! _

Pleased at having discovered the secret he accepted his dinner with a wide grin.

_Tomorrow_, Shippo thought gleefully_, tomorrow I'll find strength and then I can clobber you for once!_


	16. Sunshine

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Character: Myouga_

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_**Sunshine**

He remembered the first time he saw her, her pudgy hands reaching for him, a high squeal piercing his ears. Mother, naturally, 'ooh' and 'awe'ed at the little blood-sucking pest until he was quite sure she'd forgotten he was there. He'd decided then that he hated this new intrusion – this 'sister'. Though he tried his hardest to distance him self from her, she was always there, smiling, giggling, watching him with adoring eyes as bright and warm as sunshine.

It didn't change, as she grew bigger so did her heart. Hugs and kisses, smiles and 'I love you's came in an endless whirlwind of summers. He never paid her any mind. There were, after all, more important things to a teenage boy then a bubbly baby sister.

Then winter came.

Suddenly there were no more smiles, giggles; no more hugs or kisses. No more "I love you nii-san!" Silently he watched her funeral pyre knowing he'd never again hear her shrill voice, feel the warmth of her love. "I'll never forget you Sayuka," he whispered placing the bright yellow flowers she'd loved on her grave, the gray winter horizon stretching before him.

How he missed the sunshine.


	17. Humanity

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: Naraku/Onigumo

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**Humanity **

_The only thing to fear…_

Surrounded by darkness he feverishly whispers, staring at the writhing shapes of demons. Over and over the words spill from his lips as claws and fangs wrestle inches from him in a tide of flesh.

_The only thing to fear…_

Piece by piece they carve him away; weakness destroyed, discarded. Gagging on the metallic stench of blood, sweat beading his forehead, he waits. Flesh crawls over flesh, reorganizing, mending, creating a perfect demon body – impregnable.

_The only thing to fear…_

Mucus slides from new flesh, eyes focusing on the girl before him, and the mirror in her grasp. White-hot fear burns through him, binding him in its suffocating grasp.

_The only thing to fear…_

Quaking he backs away, HIS human eyes seared into his mind, knowing his flesh still bore the curse. Wildly staring at his hands, a maddening smile pulling at his lips, he lifts the razor sharp talons to his face.

Laughter rings through the air, madness in its notes. He stares once more at the mirror before him, seeing nothing; his eyes lying beside him.

"The only thing to fear…"

His smile fades; listening to the thumping of HIS human heart.


	18. Hanyou of the Opera

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me. Phatom of the Opera belongs to Gaston Leroux & Andrew Webber. Don't sue - I'm poor.  
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**Hanyou of the Opera****  
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"Not that I miss our morose, temperamental friend, but what IS he doing!"

Kagome sighed, refusing to look at InuYasha as they trotted after the next jewel shard. "We saw '_The Phantom of the Opera_' this weekend." She explained following Miroku's gaze, "and he's been like that ever since."

A blur of red cloth and black cloak landed before her, an ivory white mask staring back at her as the music once again began to spill from his lips; a slow, throbbing melody that did terrible things to her virgin mind. He moved closer, his arms wrapping around her, his lips inches from her ear, his breath hot on her neck.

"What raging fire shall flood the soul, what rich desire unlocks its door. What sweet seduction lies before us…"

Staring into his amber eyes she wondered if it been such a good idea to suggest some culture in their lives, then again….


	19. Broken

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Character: Mama/Papa Higurashi  
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_**Broken**

She wondered if they ever noticed, the days when her smile didn't quite reach her eyes, when tears clung to her eyelashes like rain, and her lips trembled slightly.

She was curious if they knew the way her heart would ache if she walked too close to Goshinboku or if the sakura blossoms fell her way.

She hoped they never saw her kneeling before that cardboard box, his tear stained picture pressed to her heart, nails digging into her flesh as sobs wracked her body.

She prayed they never realized she'd died with him.


	20. Downfall

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.

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_**Downfall**

He'd betrayed her, preyed on her innocence and drunk in her loneliness; wrapped her naïve heart in promises of love and forever. She'd believed him. She'd loved him. Soaked in her own blood, she cradled the broken pieces of her heart _soul _waiting for death to release her. What else was left for her?

His cruel laughter rang through her mind, wrapping her heart in new promises of death and destruction. Shaking with exhaustion, pain ripping through her dying body, she staggered forward, to Kaede – her loving sister, to the villagers – her friends and mentors, to the village she'd sworn to protect. He burned in her memory, his voice calling to her from far away, his phantom touch pulling her forward to the duty she did not want.

Memories washed over her, through her, holding her in their grasp - Kaede clutching her eye, blooding seeping through her fingers, Tsubaki screaming beneath the Sakura blossoms, InuYasha…, Tsubaki's lips moving in a silent curse, …his eyes, his smile, his kiss.

_I loved you!_

Gasping against the agony consuming her soon-to-be dead flesh she drew her bow, her arrow trained on the flash of red.

_Murderer!_

"InuYasha!"

Their eyes locked, each burning with emotions.

Betrayal. Love. Hate. Anger. Hurt.

Her arrow flew, wrapped in indecision, embedding itself deep into his heart.

Shock. Pain. Acceptance. Defeat.

He reached vainly for her, his heart beating its last.

"_Why Kikyou?"_

_Murderer._

She collapsed, the jewel grasped firmly in her pale hands, blood staining its pure sheen.

"For this you…_killed him_...and now…"_ Murderer!_

Inside something stirred.

_He betrayed me! I had no choice!_

Darkness took root.

"_You must extinguish love. You must never hold a man dear."_

_InuYasha…_

The villagers were there now, pressing their hands against her; her sister's voice calling to her. All her life she'd lived for others; bathed in blood so that they might remain pure. They hadn't cared about her happiness, just their own, when all she'd ever wanted was….

Her eyes found his face, serene in his sleepless death. A peace she'd never know.

Bitter. Hatred.

Something snapped; darkness won. Her soul split, poisoning the jewel even as she breathe her last, cold gray-blue eyes burning into his peaceful face. For daring to love this was her fate.

_I'll never forgive you! _


	21. The Magic of Love

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: InuYasha/Kagome_

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* * *

_**The Magic of Love**__

Once magic belonged to his mother. It resided in her kisses; lingered in her voice, soothed his pain and colored his world with love. Then she died and magic faded away, replaced by hungry demons and hateful faces. Love vanished and his world turned gray.

Magic returned sometime later, the grays shifting to hues of clumsy affection. It was the way her eyes held him enraptured; the way her smile filled him with warmth and hope. Magic was her open hand, but when he reached for it the magic faded, died, as did he with her arrow embedded in his beating heart.

It wasn't magic that awoke him fifty years later. He refused to give it the satisfaction. Instead he called it chance, fate, destiny, a pain in his ass as he was paired with the strange woman-child from the well who reminded him of the magic he had once known. Bitter gray shadowed his world, sharp reds blurring his vision as deep murky blues weighed down his heart. Yet she was always there, a soothing yellow of sunlight in his life.

He listened as it rolled off her tongue coloring his world with visions of hers; watched as it slid from her eyes as crystal tears shed for him. Slowly the sharp reds of revenge and deep scars of blue began to shift, their hues becoming something familiar yet strange. The grays of his world blended with her yellow turned pink affections as she offered him her heart.

Silently they sat together beneath the sky, vibrant reds and oranges splashed before them, her fingers entwined with his. Magic was a girl in a green skirt who was not afraid to hold his hand.


	22. Abaddon

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me._

I mention several times the characters looking to their left – generally in Christian art the dammed are always placed on the left of Christ. or below him. In conclusion since both InuYasha and Kagome are seeing the other on their left…they're both fucked.

Abaddon means destruction or is also known as the Angel of the Abyss

* * *

**Abaddon **

It was over, done. There would be no more battles, no quests for Shikon jewel shards. They were finished.

His hands reached for her, talons scraping lightly over her exposed skin. Shivering she glanced to her left, her vision swimming with red. Crumpled cloth lay unmoving, the sacrifice for all their sins. She closed her eyes.

She remembered then the first time she'd seen him; his golden eyes searing hers, his voice causing her once sure hands to tremble. She recalled the warmth she had felt at his unseen presence, the quickening beat her heart sang at his name. She relished the feeling of his arms wrapped possessively around her body, his words of love whispered in her ear.

Teeth nipped insistently at her throat, his hands ripping her fuku in his haste. Red trickled from his marks, pooling beneath her breast. Her breath stopped, trapped in her throat as he wrestled with her tattered skirt. Idly she wondered why he bothered at all, her eyes once more drawn to her left.

Crumpled cloth. His desperate scream as he reached for her. Shattered bones. She whimpered feeling his body collapse upon hers. His final sacrifice. All their sins repaid in his blood.

Crying out she gripped his shoulders, tears slipping from beneath her lashes as he forced himself into her. Her vision swam - red on red. Strong hands covered hers, crushing her as his thrusts quickened; breathing stumbling over whispered nothings. His body tensed, his talons piercing delicate flesh while he emptied himself within her. Sweat and blood mixed in a pool beneath her.

Limply her head fell to her left, watching the crumpled body watching her. The immaculate hair she'd always longed to touch now hung heavily with a familiar red. She craned her neck, stretching to better see him. His broken body remained as she last saw it; the mind numbing red bathing his body as it bathed her. His unseeing eyes glared over his left shoulder, burning into hers as she cradled their enemy to her chest. Holding her lover she waited for a salvation that would not come.

He shifted, his talons lightly scraping her cheek, forcing her to face him. Smiling she pressed a hungry kiss to his lips, her fingers gripping his wavy hair as she pressed her body against his.

"Inu…Yasha…"

She closed her eyes remembering the first time she'd seen him on that cold rainy night.


	23. Goodbye Love

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing: InuYasha/Kagome

* * *

_

**Goodbye Love**

He'd never told her. It just never seemed the right time. She'd promised to stay beside him and there had always been tomorrow. He'd held her countless times, their bodies moving in an ancient rhythm proclaiming what his lips could not. She'd smiled, curling into the warmth of his body, content to be near him.

When she birthed their first child he'd cried, happiness choking the words in his throat though he was certain she'd have understood. She'd smiled pressing soft lips to his, trembling with emotion.

And so went their life together; time swept away in hugs and kisses, laughter and sorrow.

Kneeling before her now he trembled, emotion choking the words he'd meant to say so long ago. Nervously he wet his lips, carefully holding the ring before her.

"I know I should've done this years ago, I…just never found the right…time…." His voice trailed off into a soft whisper. "I love you Kagome. I….I wanted to you to know that. I bought it years ago; it's only right you should have it now."

His tears fell into the dirt, his aged fingers placing the gold ring upon the headstone. Silently he started at her grave, regret choking his words as it had for years.


	24. Performance Anxiety

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
Pairing__: InuYasha/Tetsusaiga_

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* * *

_

**Performance Anxiety **

He gulped, his hand dropping the useless appendage. She shifted beside him, her hand touching his shoulder soothingly.

"InuYasha?"

Ashamed he turned away from her, his eyes glaring hatefully at the incorporative object.  
"I'm sorry Kagome. I just…it wouldn't…"

She hushed him, gently taking his hand in hers.  
"It's ok InuYasha. It happens sometimes."  
"Not to me!"

Kagome smiled grimly.  
"Well maybe it just wasn't up to performing today."  
"But…I'm still young!"  
"InuYasha, you're over fifty! It's bound to happen."

Again he turned his gaze downward glaring at it.  
"I suppose…"  
"Do you want to try again?"

He glanced at her, his eyes taking in her sweet smile, her understanding eyes, the sweep of her hair. If she wasn't ashamed, then why should he be? He nodded, feeling his confidence return.  
"Kagome…"

Smiling reassuringly, she reached down, gripping the object tightly in her hands.  
"I believe in you, InuYasha."

He smiled back, taking Tetsusaiga from her grasp.


	25. Akirameru

_Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, ect... not me.  
__Warnings: Implied rapeat beginning  
Pairings: Kagome/Wakatono_

_

* * *

_**Akirameru**

She gazed steadily at the changing leaves; the strong scent of Chrysanthemums perfuming the chill air. Another autumn; another year without them, without him. She couldn't even cry, her tears having been spent that bloody autumn when she'd watched them fall, helplessly; her spirit shattered like their bones.

The child that should have been another's moved restlessly within her. Before the leaves fell she would become a mother once more. She felt no joy at this. Indeed she felt nothing but the cold emptiness that had seized her tender heart since her Lord, her husband, had shifted his cruel eyes to her across that blood soaked field. Before the sun set her blood had joined theirs; the last piece of her innocence shredded by his spear.

That summer she'd given him a daughter.

Her ladies tittered excitably, announcing her husband's return. She made no move to acknowledge him, her gaze fixed on the gardens she wasn't allowed to roam. The voice that had filled her adolescence with terror, spoke quietly to her now, stolen flesh running its fingers through her long hair while he whispered his day's sins to her.

Had she cared to look she'd have seen the proof soaked into his fine silks; their human blood splattered across his battle hungry face, trailed across her floor. But she did not. As still and lifeless as a porcelain doll she watched her forbidden garden, her husband's talons raking her shoulder as he pulled her kimono free, kissing her flesh hungrily, hands pressing her lifeless body to his.

On these nights, when he called upon her, when his cold hands covered every inch of her with his lust, she wanted to scream, to maim. She wanted to die. Instead she lay there motionless, pretending her body didn't burn for his touch; that her lips didn't ache for his kiss. Pretending she didn't know he saw only Kikyou. Pretending this didn't add torment to her already twisted soul.


	26. Hunger

[InuYasha © Rumiko Takahashi ]

Summary: In retrospect he supposed he could've done without the subterfuge. It had, afterall, cost him the very prize he was after.

* * *

**HATRED**

Hunger woke him, the burning need for revenge nearly overpowering the crippling pain of his injuries as the woman gently bandaged his mangled flesh.

Hunger woke him, lust pumping through his body with each inhaled breath of incense and healing herbs she left to linger in her wake.

Hunger woke him, vicious jealously filling the splintered cracks of his sanity as she gazed through him to the would-be man.

Hunger woke him, hatred oozing from his body like the blood the feasting hoard missed.

Hunger woke him, vengeful jealousy coiled with ambitious cruelty as he watched the would-be lovers parting promise.

Hunger woke him, freeing him from restraining human flesh and weakness. Hunger would wake her too, with the right bait.


End file.
